How Information is Updated on DriveBC and Why You Might Notice a Delay

When it comes to resources for the travelling public to inform them what’s happening on our BC highways, DriveBC is pretty great. Whether it’s info on construction (current or planned), rock slides, avalanche, maintenance, special events, vehicle collisions, inland ferry delays, or updates on when our roads will open or services will resume …basically anything that could impact your travel plans is shared on the website.

But how does the information go from “in the field” to on the website?

Updates to DriveBC are initiated by our ministry staff or maintenance contractors on the scene, including details (if available) like location, what’s going on, when the next update will be, whether there’s a detour and when the estimated opening time is planned. Once the update is inputted into the system, it’s displayed on the website within minutes. Ministry staff and maintenance contractors make every effort to stay informed, providing updates on DriveBC quickly, regularly and as conditions change.

You can help too. There’s a feedback button on DriveBC which you can use to share information. When we hear from you about a road closure, the DriveBC team contacts the local district staff or maintenance contractor to check on/update the situation.

Sometimes, though rarely, there can be discrepancies or delays in information to DriveBC. There are a few reasons this might happen:

Emergency Services – Sometimes, other first responders like the RCMP need to close a road, and they do so before letting our staff and maintenance contractors know or before we arrive on the scene. This may cause a discrepancy or delay between what’s happening on the highway and what is actually being posted to DriveBC.

Safety First – Ministry staff and maintenance contractors are often involved directly with the emergency response taking place on scene, so if urgent actions need to be taken right away, this may cause a delay in inputting data.

Connectivity – Gaps in communication systems (lack of cellular coverage means having to radio in updates to someone who can input data into the syste
m).

Emergency On Scene – It can sometimes be difficult to estimate opening times due to the thorough investigations that occur alongside motor vehicle incidents. Often, traffic analysts must be called into remote locations and the road cannot be opened until then.

To really help you, it’s important for us to provide timely and accurate information regarding road closures, planned maintenance work and extreme weather conditions through DriveBC. We hope you continue to use our website when planning that next BC road trip to help you know before you go.

If you have any other questions, let us know in the comments below and we will try to get you an answer.

8 Responses to How Information is Updated on DriveBC and Why You Might Notice a Delay

Wayne Webster on November 19, 2018 at 11:17 am

I held off my trip from Calgary to Radium, B.C for 3 days unnecessarily because of road conditions not being updated. Even today, Monday November 19, the road conditions have not been updated since last Friday at 2 am. # 93 from Castle Junction to Radium is bare and fine for driving. We went through there yesterday and the roads were like Summer. Please explain if possible as I rely on drivebc.ca. Thanks

Highway 93, between Castle Junction and Radium is a federally operated section of highway. The federal government relays road condition information to our staff, who update DriveBC accordingly. While we try to keep the lines of communication open and information up to date, there can sometimes be a delay in the information we receive. For conditions within the national parks we deal generally with the Banff Parks Dispatch.
@
Banff National Park / Parks Canada / Government of Canada
P.O. Box 900, Banff AB T1L 1K2Banff.dispatch@pc.gc.ca / Telephone: 403 762 1470 / Facsimile: 403 762 3240https://www.pc.gc.ca/en

There appears to be a problem with the Emergency category. Work that has been planned for some time is categorized as Emergency and therefore doesn’tshow Up on DriveBC. There should be stricter control on the use of emergency road closure category. DriveBC is an effective tool if it is current. That means planned road work affecting traffic should be listed

Thanks for your comment. Sorry, but we just need to clarify, are you referring to the incident (! and triangle) icon on DriveBC? You can select what layers of information you would like to see on the DriveBC map and the incident button is one of those layers. If a road is closed, it will be listed in this category. If there is reduced access to a road due to rockslides, etc., that will also be captured in this category. Are you wondering why construction work to fix a road after an incident isn’t moved to the construction category? Thanks for your help clarifying. We will share your response back for review once we have heard back from you.

Huntington Rd is closed during the Abbotsford airshow. It was not listed last year and is not being listed again this year. I can understand
the no stopping and no parking signs but this is really ridiculous!!!

Hello,
Thanks for your comment. Huntington Road can’t be found on DriveBC because it falls under, and is maintained by, the City of Abbotsford, not the Province. If you have questions or concerns, please contact them. Here’s their contact website: http://www.abbotsford.ca/contact_us.htm